Letters to the Editor: For April 18, 2014

The request for applications (RAF) has been released and there are no surprises, other than the requirement that the applicant is required to obtain City Council support. The RFA changed nothing, most certainly not the community’s resolve against a Casino resort.

My role as a city commissioner is to represent the majority of residents who live here and to make thoughtful decisions that are consistent with our Comprehensive Plan, which focuses on maintaining a downtown retail/business core and a greenbelt that surrounds this core. In addition, I believe that as an elected official my first priority is to protect and maintain the quality of life, economic vitality and overall successes we worked so hard to obtain; I wouldn’t be doing my job if I supported a plan that risked any one of those components and put the interests of a few above those of the majority of my constituents.

Here are the facts: A casino license can be sold at any time to a gambling conglomerate without local ties. A hotel is still required in the RFA, along with other amenities. The state is looking for a capital investment, although the amount is still unknown, that will create a successful “destination.” We are already a destination and I remain firm in my conviction that a competing destination resort casino within our city will negatively impact our downtown and the character and charm of our community. We’ve already witnessed a 25 percent decrease in the daily attendance at our historic race course over the past 10 years and adding more gambling competition a mile down the road doesn’t seem like the solution. I also stand firm in my belief that Saratogians do not want to risk our successful and diversified economy with a subsidized casino economy that relies on keeping patrons on site; especially one that would compete with our downtown, where small and locally-owned businesses work cooperatively to generate a unique and nationally-recognized experience.

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I am likewise concerned that the Saratoga Casino and Raceway is moving forward with a $30 million expansion, which:

1.) Eliminates the (harness) training track

2.) Includes a hotel and convention center that our business community specifically has objected to

3.) Does not align with our city Comprehensive Plan and

4.) Fails to disclose the further expansion planned as part of their casino bid, and those impacts.

A city cannot properly plan for the cost of water, roads, and other big ticket infrastructure needs that will need to be created and maintained if they do not fully recognize the scope and intentions in regards to any large scale development. As the city public works commissioner I need to allocate funds and resources to accommodate the entire city and a project potentially this big, cannot be brought to the table in fragments.

Between now and June 30, the date casino license applications are due, I don’t doubt the City Council will be lobbied by the casino industry with promises of revenue windfalls for the city and doomsday predictions if a casino goes somewhere else. But I sat on the City Council when the video lottery terminal money was taken away by the state in 2009 and 2010 and those promised tax benefits of today could be taken away or reduced tomorrow just as easily as they have in the past. Furthermore, we all know that people and businesses come to visit and relocate to Saratoga Springs because of our entertainment venues, historic race tracks, successful downtown and, most importantly, our quality of life. So, why would we want to risk our biggest assets? Therefore, after reviewing the RFA I maintain my commitment to the majority of the residents here, to an economic future that emphasizes our core community values and I remain opposed to a casino resort in Saratoga Springs.